Wild yam in therapeutics
Wild yam is a natural plant product traditionally used in various cultures, particularly in North and Central America and Asia, for a range of health conditions including digestive issues, coughs, morning sickness, and menstrual cramps. Despite its historical use, modern interpretations of wild yam in the U.S. often revolve around the misconception that it contains female hormones like progesterone and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). In reality, wild yam does not contain these hormones or any substances that mimic their effects in the body.
The interest in wild yam surged when a scientist developed a method to synthesize progesterone from its component, diosgenin, in the mid-20th century, which significantly lowered the cost of hormone production. However, while diosgenin can be chemically converted into progesterone in the lab, the human body cannot perform this conversion naturally. Clinical studies, including a notable double-blind trial, showed that wild yam did not alleviate menopausal symptoms or affect hormone levels in women.
Some wild yam products may contain synthetic progesterone, but the "wild yam" label can be misleading. There is ongoing interest in the potential anti-inflammatory properties of wild yam, particularly in relation to conditions like rheumatoid arthritis, but further research is needed to fully understand its therapeutic value.
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Wild yam in therapeutics
DEFINITION: Natural plant product used to treat specific health conditions.
PRINCIPAL PROPOSED USES: None
OTHER PROPOSED USE: Source of female hormones, anti-inflammatory
Overview
Various species of wild yam grow throughout North and Central America and Asia. Traditionally, this herb has been used to treat indigestion, coughs, colic, morning sickness, gallbladder pain, menstrual cramps, joint pain, and nerve pain. However, the modern use of wild yam in the United States is based on a fundamental misconception: that it contains women’s hormones, such as progesterone and dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). In reality, there is no progesterone, DHEA, or any other hormone in wild yam, nor does wild yam contain any substances that have progesterone-like or estrogen-like effects.
When progesterone was discovered, it was very expensive to produce. The first methods involved direct extraction of progesterone from cow ovaries, a process that required fifty thousand cows to yield 20 milligrams of purified hormone. Other hormones, such as estrogen and DHEA, were also difficult to manufacture. Although doctors wanted to experiment with prescribing these treatments as medicine until a simpler production method could be developed, it simply was not feasible.
A scientist and businessperson named Russell Marker won the race to discover a more economical source of hormones. n the 1940s, he perfected a method of synthesizing progesterone from a constituent of wild yam called diosgenin. This process involved several chemical transformations carried out in the laboratory.
Marker focused his attention on two species of yam found in Mexico—Dioscorea macrostachya and D. barbasco. The latter is richer in diosgenin, while the former is much easier to harvest in the wild. He formed a manufacturing company in Mexico that produced progesterone and DHEA from these raw materials.
Corporate competition and difficult labor conditions eventually forced him to close his plant, but his method of synthesizing progesterone continued to be used, bringing the price down drastically and helping to pave the way for the modern birth control pill. Progesterone continued to be manufactured from wild yam for decades until a cheaper source of raw material was found in cultivated soybeans.
Neither soybeans nor wild yams, however, contain progesterone. They contain only chemicals that chemists can use as a starting point to manufacture progesterone. However, just because chemists can make progesterone out of diosgenin does not mean the body can do the same. Actually, it is very unlikely because the steps chemists use to carry out this conversion do not remotely resemble natural processes. Thus, any product that claims to contain “natural progesterone from wild yam” is misleading.
Studies involving cells in a test tube have shown that wild yam does not act like estrogen or progesterone. Furthermore, in a double-blind, placebo-controlled study of twenty-three women with symptoms of menopause, the use of wild yam did not reduce hot flashes or raise levels of progesterone or estrogen in the body. This remains the only study of note on wild yam.
Nonetheless, some wild yam products do contain progesterone. Manufacturers add synthetic progesterone to these creams. There may be a value to taking progesterone in cream form, but the “wild yam” part of the product is a red herring. Still, wild yam is often seen advertised as a natural alternative to treating hormone-related in issues in women, such as menopausal symptoms and symptoms of premenstrual syndrome such as cramps. Wild yam may also have anti-inflammatory effects, which could potentially treat conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. More study is necessary.
Bibliography
Aumsuwan P., et al. "Evaluation of Wild Yam (Dioscorea villosa) Root Extract as a Potential Epigenetic Agent in Breast Cancer Cells." In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Anim, vol. 51, no. 1, 2015, pp. 59-71.
Komesaroff, P A, et al. "Effects of Wild Yam Extract on Menopausal Symptoms, Lipids and Sex Hormones in Healthy Menopausal Women." Climacteric: The Journal of the International Menopause Society, vol. 4, no. 2, 2001, pp. 144-50.
"Wild Yam." Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, www.mountsinai.org/health-library/herb/wild-yam. Accessed 11 Sept. 2024.
"Wild Yam." Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 12 July 2022, www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/herbs/wild-yam. Accessed 11 Sept. 2024.
Wilson, Debra Rose. "Wild Yam: Benefits, Evidence, Safety, and Side Effects." Medical News Today, 21 July 2023, www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/322423#benefits-and-uses. Accessed 11 Sept. 2024.